I froze as the mission timer blinked red and a hatch slammed shut on my last rescue. The roster was a locked armory, each name a promise I hadn’t yet earned. I’ll tell you which doors to pick first so your runs stop feeling like guesswork.
I’ve played hours on Steam and checked threads on Reddit and the official Games Workshop feeds so you don’t have to—here’s a clear map of every character in Warhammer Survivors and the exact tasks that get them into your party.
How do I unlock characters in Warhammer Survivors?
You grab characters by meeting specific in-run objectives, finding Paint Pots, or rescuing them on particular stages. Some are free from the start; others demand grind (or focus) — and a handful require rare Paint Pots that behave like mini achievements you’ll want to chase on Steam, Google Play, or the App Store.
I watched a friend spam the Ork Stronghold until something finally dropped — How to unlock all Warhammer Survivors characters in 40K Universe
You should treat this list like a mission brief: fast to scan, precise on conditions. I’ll highlight the clear grabs and the ones that ask you to grind a stat or chase specific Paint Pots.
| Character | How to Unlock |
|---|---|
| Malum Caedo | Unlocked by default |
| Brother Luca Amasius | 200 Coins |
| Sister Superior Amalia Novena | 400 Coins |
| Celestian Sacresant Aveline Aboye | Get 10 Relics |
| Trooper Bartosz Kozlowski | Rescue the character on Imperial Bastion |
| Canones Aurora Veritas | Apply the Burning status effect to 100 Death Guards |
| Max Mahon | Defeat 1,000 or more Nurglings on a single run |
| The Legend of Catachan | Rescue the character on Imperial Bastion |
| K9 Mastiff | Rescue the character on Gallowdark |
| Commissar Sebastian Yarrick | Rescue the character on Ork Stronghold |
| Saint Celestine | Rescue the character on Imperial Shipyard |
| Tor Garadon | Defeat 10,000 or more enemies (across multiple runs) |
| Sergeant Furan | Get the Gauntlet and Lightning Bolt passives to Level 5 on Ork Stronghold |
| Chaplain Fo’ Baran | In ‘Eavy Metal mode, recover 1,000 or more Wounds |
| Knight-Commander Pask | Defeat 100 Ork Vehicles |
| Black Templars Castellan | Get the Abaddon Black Paint Pot on Imperial Bastion |
| Chief Librarian Mephiston | Get the following Paint Pots from your runs: Abaddon Black, Leadbelcher, Mephiston Red, Rakarth Flesh |
| Lieutenant Titus | Get the following Paint Pots from your runs: Abaddon Black, Agrax Earthshade, Celestra Grey, Reikland Fleshade, Retributor Armour, MacCragge Blue |
Which characters should I chase first?
If you want quick gains, pick characters that are either free or cost Coins. I recommend rescuing stage characters when you finish a new map for the first time; those rescues are one-off actions rather than long grinds. If you’re hunting Paint Pots, focus runs on stages that list the Paint Pots you need—community trackers on Steam make this faster.
I overheard someone at the bar boast about rescuing Gotrek in one run — How to unlock all Warhammer Survivors characters in Age of Sigmar Universe
The Age of Sigmar roster leans more on stage rescues and Paint Pots. I’ll point out which characters drop from repeated kills, which come from single rescues, and which are tied to item finds.
| Character | How to Unlock |
|---|---|
| Neave Blacktalon | Unlocked by default |
| Lorai, Child of Abyss | Unlocked by default |
| Juntal Bernskyn | Unlocked by default |
| Armand Callis | Rescue the character on The Great Parch |
| Sharynn Azurwrath | Defeat 10 Troggoths |
| Shakan Golden Blade | Apply Slowed on 100 enemies |
| Hanniver Toll | Rescue the character on The Great Parch |
| Gotrek Gurnisson | Rescue the character on Skrappa Spill |
| Bostus Oxenhammer | Rescue the character on Bloodwind Spoil |
| Ulgronthier | Rescue the character on Under-Empire |
| Maleneth Witchblade | Find the following Paint Pot on your runs: Leadbelcher |
| Lyssa Revenya | Find the following Paint Pot on your runs: Abaddon Black, Leadbelcher, Agrax Earthshade, Mechanicus Standard Grey |
| Valius, the Keeper Aqshian | Find the following Paint Pot on your runs: Leadbelcher, Celestra Grey, Reikland Fleshade, Retributor Armour, Drakenhof Nightshade, Runelord Brass |
Some tactics I use: if a Paint Pot is rare, stack runs on stages that already drop similar items; if a character calls for a kill tally (Nurglings, Troggoths), run builds with area damage and survivability. I also track progress on community spreadsheets and clip runs on YouTube so I can repeat what worked.
Your progression map becomes a weathered treasure map, inked in achievements and Paint Pots — choose a corner and clear it methodically, and you’ll stop wasting runs on random drops.
Which character are you going after first, and what run will you try to shave off your time?